The question of whether Eagles head coach Chip Kelly is a racist continues to dominate headlines, at least as far as ESPN is concerned. The issue flared up again when the Eagles flipped CB Brandon Boykin to the Steelers for a draft pick and Boykin said Kelly is "uncomfortable around grown men of our culture." Boykin later clarified and said he wasn't speaking in racial terms, but his comments gave us yet another Stephen A. Smith wonder-quote based on dubious origins, so we're cool with it.

"First Take" was all about Kelly this morning, and Stephen A. passionately argued over and over again that there is just something up with this dude. His views ping-ponged from reasonable to downright outlandish -- particularly when he said he had "heard" that Kelly tracking Eagles players' sleeping habits with monitors... monitors that, according to Smith's source, also track whether they drink or go to the club.

The unsubstantiated claim then became a rant on how black players would likely not want to be monitored because of their shared history. Smith's rage basically turned Skip Bayless speechless -- usually an impossible task -- and got Herm Edwards laughing. For awhile, it's not clear if Smith is implying that this system is only in place for the team's black players, until Edwards makes him clarify:

"I don't know how that's possible" ... but I'm just going to pass it along as if it's possible anyway? Classic Stephen A. Smith. At least he knew that we'd call him out for this.

Is Chip Kelly a racist? Probably not. Is he a weirdo nerd who is more comfortable watching film than speaking to young people? Probably. Is he monitoring when players go to the club? Probably not. Might his monitors relay information about his player sleeping habits -- i.e., that they didn't go to sleep until 4 a.m. -- which could be interpreted certain ways? Perhaps. But if this is what the racism argument is hinging on now, it's clear that we need to get back to actual football season as soon as possible, to bury these stupid headlines once and for all (for now).